Well … I've been working in Brazil
- 1st time in 1979 … there were by that time some 110 millions Brazilians … my rental car was a VW Beetle (whose spare wheel located in the front trunk has been stolen … twice … but that is another story) … many of those VW were running alcohol by that time … but not mine
- 2nd time in 1982 … a whole summer
- and then … no nothing till this 2008 summer : Nordeste (Recife, Salvador), Rio and Parana state by the Argentinian and the Paraguay borders …

Well worth to be noted : there are now 187 millions inhabitants in Brazil which became in between the 12th Oil producer in the world … yes .. real crude black oil … not sugar cane juice … and some oil pumps in the Bahia de Todos Os Santos Bay .. with a dozen of tankers queuing

First surprise : it is quasi impossible to have the luggage fitted into the taxi trunk where an enormous LPG tank swallows most of the space … and it has been the same with quasi all taxis during this Brazilian tour … but in petrol stations : quasi no LPG pump …

- Hello Mr taxista, do you run Alcohol ?
- Ah … I could because this car runs 3 different fuels, but 99% of the time, I am running LPG … cheaper. But you should know that here, in Nordeste especially in Recife but it is the same in Salvador or in Rio, during winter period (NDLT : understand Brazilian winter that is to say in July), it is the low tide season for sugar cane and then the price of alcohol is increased by some 15% … so finally you had better run gasoline : 2nd surprise

So if I understand well … during the XVI° century, many European worked hard .. if one may say … organizing chartered boats to send people to work in Nordeste sugar cane plantations … and finally, according to Mr taxista, they are just running out sugar cane juice in winter !!!

Well let us have a look to the real prices
In recife, Gasoline (G as Gasolina) costs around 2,59 Rs the liter (more or less 1,05 €) versus 1,799Rs for Alcohol (A) … just 30,5% below … which is obviously not a very good price considering the overconsumption due to E100 running … and this picture is an average one, many petrol stations showing higher prices for Alcohol

In substance : when the alcohol/petrol ratio is below 30% … better run on petrol and this limit is reached in may petrol sations of João Pessoa ( a small city of some 300.000 inhabitants 120 kms North of Recife).

In substance : it is the low tide season for sugar cane in Nordeste and alcohol needs to travel from South Brazil ( NDLT : Sao Paulo, Minas Gerais et Goais) which leads to stock reduction and higher prices

Even the economic paper Jornal do Comercio, is taking the news and base its calculation on the 30% limit between the respective price of alcohol and petrol … which is a big surprise for me … because I was expecting very different figures … considering Brazilians run E100 …

In Brazil, quasi all cars have a "Flex" logo affixed at the rear : FIAT, Opel sold as Chevrolet, Renault, Peugeot, VW, Citroen etc ...
Worth to know, Dacia Logan & Sandero are mainly sold there as luxuousus Renault 1L6 & 1L616v with back radar & tutti ... very few with the 1.0L engine
...
3000 kms farther near the Argentinian border
Well ... alcohol is now twice cheaper as petrol … although no sugar cane crop in Parana
And this time the taxi trunk is so wide that we are now regretting not to have more luggage
- Then, Mr Taxista, do you run alcohol?
- No, I'm running petrol ... alcohol : no value for the money
- Woouah … but it is twice cheaper
- Yes, this is true but it is again far more cheaper to cross the Argentinian border and to have the tank filled with Argentinian petrol (not a sigle drop of alcohol available in Argentina petrol stations). As I am travelling to Argentina twice a week … then you understand

Yes I understand but I'm still surprised by all these Brazilian facts and figures

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